DIVISION 2
Viroqua (23-6) rode the left throwing arm of Mitchell Stalsberg to advance to the Division 2 final with a 2-1 win over Ripon (17-7) in nine innings.
Stalsberg struck out a State Tournament record 21 batters, including the first 12 out he recorded in the game. He surrendered a run on five hits to post the complete-game victory. The previous strikeout record for any division was 20 by Hud Gelein of Eau Claire vs. Soldiers Grove in 1958.
The Blackhawks scored first on a throwing error that allowed Dustin Stalsberg to score from second. The Tigers tied the game in the fourth Taylor Worthington when coaxed a bases-loaded walk. Dustin Stalsberg doubled in Mitchell Stalsberg, who led off the ninth inning with a single, with the winning run. Both Dustin Stalsberg and Dalten Tryggestad collected a pair of hits for the Blackhawks. Ben Pulvermacher had a two hits for the Tigers.
Jefferson (27-3) will appear in the title game for the first time since 1994 following an 11-0 win over Notre Dame (16-12) in the Division 2 semifinal.
Heath Renz pitched a gem, tossing a one-hit shutout. He struck out 10 and walked four. He allowed just one baserunner to reach third base. It’s the first one-hitter in the State Tournament since Jordan Jess of Ripon one-hit the Tritons in the 2011 semifinals.
The Eagles did all their damage at the plate in two big innings. In the fourth inning, Jacob Nelson stroked a single to center to score two runs, and Christian Ott followed with a run-scoring single. The final run of the inning scored on a fielder’s choice.
Jefferson picked up more insurance with seven runs on six hits and two errors in the seventh inning. Two of those runs scored on a single by Roby Schlesner, and two scored on a misplayed popup on the infield.
Nelson, Ott and Garrett Ebert had two hits for the Eagles, and Ty Yewman had the only hit for the Tritons.
DIVISION 3
Defending champion Oconto (17-6) is back in the championship game to defend its title following a 5-4 triumph over Racine St. Catherine’s (13-16) in eight innings.
Cody Zahm walked with two out in the Blue Devils’ eighth inning, stole second and scored the game-winning run on a single by Tanner Pillsbury.
The Angels scores unearned runs in the first and second innings and held the two-run advantage until the fifth when the Blue Devils tallied four runs, highlighted by a two-run, two-out single by Gabe Hintz. The Angels tied the game in the bottom of the inning with two runs aided by a pair of errors.
Pillsbury and Grant Frazer each had two hits to lead the Blue Devils, and Frazer struck out nine and yielded just one earned run in going the distance for the victory. Derek Heffel collected two hits for the Angels.
Wisconsin Heights (22-2) advances to the State final with a 3-2 win over Mondovi (19-4) in the second Division 3 semifinal.
Marcus Caminiti turned in a sterling performance on the hill fo the Vanguards. He allowed two runs on just two hits, both coming in the sixth inning. He struck out six and retired 22 of the 26 hitters he faced.
Cale Handel and Josh Schoenmann had a pair of hits for the Vanguards. Sawyer Hayes and Josh Peterson were the only players to reach base via a hit against Caminiti. Peterson’s double was the only extra-base hit of the game.
DIVISION 4
Last year’s runner-up Lake Country Lutheran (31-0) returns to the Division 4 final, atttempting to address some unfinisthed businees following an 8-2 decision over Pittsville (21-5) in the semifinal.
The Lightning scored three runs in the third inning, four in the fourth and three more in the fifth inning to take a commanding 11-2 lead and put the game out of reach. Every player in the Lightning batting order had a hit in the game with the exception of winning pitcher BJ Sabol, who struck out seven and allowed just four hits. He also drove in a pair of runs with two sacrifice flies.
Andrew Buran, Murphy Shannon and Ben Wilkins each had two hits for the Lightning, and Jacob Budnik drove in three runs, including two on a triple. The Panthers’ Austin John had two of the team’s three hits.
McDonell Central (19-7) ran its way to a 14-4 win over Ithaca (17-6) in the second Division 4 semifinal match-up of the day in Division 4.
The Macks stole 10 bases, which is tied for second most in tournament history, and took advantage of seven Bulldogs errors. Zach Gilles had three hits and drove in three runs, and Nolan Baier belted a pair of doubles with four RBIs to ignite the Macks offense. Aaron Milkert, James Davis and Robert Ochs also had two hits. James Oelke, Caleb Olson and Jacob Huebsch each had two hits for the Bulldogs
Each team scored four runs in the first inning, but the rest of the scoring was all McDonell Central, scoring five times in the third, three times in the fifth, and one run in the sixth and seventh.
James Davis went the distance to get the win for the Macks, giving up 10 hits and striking out five. James Oelke suffered the loss giving up nine runs, seven of which were earned.